The District of Saanich has officially adopted new amendments to their Zoning Bylaw which will require less parking spots per home, allowing new housing projects to be built faster.
On top of altering this bylaw for the purposes of housing, the District says this will lead to residents embracing more sustainable transportation options.
Specifically, the new measures include:
- Lowering parking minimums to one stall per unit for residential projects of 12 units or less, with some exceptions
- Applying parking maximums of up to 1.5 stalls per unit for residential projects of more than 12 units, with the requirement of these projects embracing sustainable transportation options
- Requiring residential buildings of more than 12 units to provide onsite loading zones for delivery vehicles
Saanich noted that although these measures were adopted, they remain interim in scope and will be refined and enhanced through a comprehensive initiative slated to begin in early 2025.
Additionally, the District says that these changes were not made to eliminate parking entirely from buildings, nor will they.
“Taking this step to modernize our parking requirements is aimed at helping us get more affordable, infill housing built in our community by streamlining District processes and reducing costs for developers,” says Saanich Mayor Dean Murdock.
“These measures also respond to the needs of people who want to live in walkable, complete communities where they don’t necessarily need to own a car to access the services and amenities they desire.”
These changes are coming into effect on January 1st.
Developments that are already in the works will be able to opt-in to these new requirements or use old requirements up until March 10th, 2025.
This change to the parking standards was driven by ideas brought forward to the District council by Councillors Teale Phelps Bondaroff and Zac de Vries this spring.
